Effect of extracts of Angelica polymorpha on reaginic antibody production.

An aqueous extract of Angelica polymorpha was examined for its immunoregulating properties. Its effect on the production of antibodies was tested in (C57BL/6 X DBA/2)F1 mice. When the animals were treated daily with the extract, the serum titers of reaginic antibodies normally observed after a single injection dinitrophenylovalbumin (DNP3-OA) were significantly lower, and the higher and more sustained reaginic titers induced by booster injections of DNP3-OA were also inhibited. The immunosuppressive activity was observed both by oral and intraperitoneal administration of the extract, and it was not removed by dialysis. In contrast, the serum titers of IgG were not significantly altered by the administration of the extract. The extract had little or no effect on the passive cutaneous anaphylaxis reaction or the release of histamine from sensitized rat lung fragments.